City waste chokes Mavallipura water bodies

It’s not just the stink and health problems that residents of Mavallipura have to contend with.

There has been severe water pollution in the last decade in the village, which lies in the catchment area of Arkavathy River and Thippagondanahalli (TG Halli) reservoir, due to the presence of unsegregated garbage at the landfill site.  

These and other concerns were expressed at a workshop on ‘Access to Safe Water: Challenges and Opportunities in Mavallipura,’ conducted jointly by the Environment Support Group (ESG), in co-ordination with the Karnataka State Council for Science and Technology (KSCST) and the Dalit Sangharsha Samiti in the City recently.

The workshop was organised as part of the ‘International Day of Action for Rivers and Against Dams’. Environment experts interacted with Mavallipura residents and discussed problems caused due to unscientific disposal of waste. 

Mavallipura Gram Panchayat member B Srinivas said: “Around 40 lakh tonnes of mixed waste is rotting in what was once prime agricultural land, forests and grazing pastures, contaminating the water, soil, and air. BBMP must lift the waste dumped here over the years.”

Environment activist and educationist Bhargavi S Rao of ESG explained about the health concerns due to the unsegregated waste.

“The toxic pollutants that have contaminated nearby lakes, besides the Arkavathy River and Thippagondanahalli reservoir (zone 1) are causing a variety of diseases like cancer, chikungunya, dengue and malaria over a period of time, risking the lives of people in the area,” she said.

Rajeshwari, another resident from Mavallipura, said: “BBMP did conduct two health workshops in the beginning. There should be such health workshops and inspection regularly in the area. Also, since water bodies in Mavallipura have become toxic, we need Cauvery water.”